Department for Transport

Birmingham New Street Station: Commonwealth Games 2022

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to hold discussions with the Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022 organising committee and Network Rail over the case for improving the signage at Birmingham New Street Station for the Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton: The West Midlands Combined Authority, the Birmingham 2022 Organising Committee and Birmingham City Council are already working together and with other transport partners, on transport preparations and planning for the Games, covering the transportation of spectators, athletes and the Games Family, whilst at the same time ensuring that any disruption to transport users is kept to a minimum.

High Speed 2 Railway Line: Water Supply

Lord Randall of Uxbridge: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of any impact of the construction of Phase 1 of HS2 on the cost of public water supply.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton: There will be no increase in the cost of public water supply as a result of HS2 works. The HS2 project is funded to cover the cost of any actions required to ensure that the provision of high-quality drinking water is maintained. HS2 Ltd, not water companies or their customers, will therefore cover the costs of any mitigation or risk reduction measures that are implemented to maintain public water supplies.

High Speed 2 Railway Line: Construction

Lord Randall of Uxbridge: To ask Her Majesty's Government whatassessment they have made of any damage caused by the construction of Phase?1 of HS2 on chalk aquifers; and what estimate they have made of the costs related to any such damage.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton: Where construction activities occur within a chalk aquifer, or any other designated aquifer, HS2 Ltd works closely with the Environment Agency and relevant third parties to ensure that any risks are identified and that the design and delivery of the scheme causes no damage to the aquifer. The Environment Agency, as the regulatory body responsible for managing groundwater resources, will not provide the necessary approvals for work to commence until it is satisfied that there will be no detrimental impact to the aquifer. In order to provide all necessary protections and to mitigate identified risks, HS2 Ltd has produced comprehensive and detailed risk assessments for its activities which affect aquifers. The HS2 project is funded to ensure that works can progress with minimal impact on the water environment and no interruption to the continued provision of high-quality drinking water from aquifers. Protective measures include the selection of the cleanest tunnelling technologies and the enhancement of water treatment and supply capabilities.

Urban Areas: Pollution Control

Lord Truscott: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they haveto accelerate the decarbonisation of city centres, including banning diesel and petrol vehicles from heavily built-up areas.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton: Tackling emissions at a local level will make an important contribution to the decarbonisation of transport. Developing solutions that consider the needs of different locations is one of our six strategic priorities for transport decarbonisation, and recognises that different decarbonisation solutions will be required and will work best in different places across the UK. Taking a place-based approach will enable us to engage communities in building their own net zero visions and encourage and enable further progress.Heavily built up areas will also benefit from the Prime Minister’s ambitious plans to boost cycling and walking and vision that half of all journeys in towns and cities are to be cycled or walked by 2030. This includes a £2 billion package of funding for active travel over the next 5 years. Over £200 million of funding is available this year to Local Authorities through the Active Travel Fund. The phase out date for the sale of new petrol and diesel cars and vans will be 2030, and from 2035 all new cars and vans must be fully zero emission at the tailpipe.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Internet: Safety

Lord Tope: To ask Her Majesty's Government when they intend to bring forward legislation on online safety.

Baroness Barran: In December we published the Full Government Response to the Online Harms White Paper consultation.The Online Safety Bill, which will give effect to the regulatory framework outlined in the full government response, will be ready this year.

Entertainments and Sports: Insurance

Lord Moynihan: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to partner with the sport and entertainment sectors to underwrite contingency insurance for live events.

Baroness Barran: The Government is aware of the concerns which have been raised about the potential challenge of securing insurance for live events, including those in the sporting and entertainment sectors. We have been working closely with the affected sectors over the last few months to understand the challenges and to keep the situation under review.Understandably, the bar for considering Government intervention is set extremely high, especially in light of the furlough scheme and local business support, so the evidence of market failure specific to DCMS sectors must be clearly demonstrated and robust.

Department for Work and Pensions

Bereavement Support Payment: Cohabitation

Baroness Hayman: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the High Court judgment in R (Jackson and Simpson) v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions [2020] EWHC 183 on 7 February 2020, when they intend to lay theRemedial Order to remove the incompatibilities from the legislation governing Bereavement Support Payment by extending that benefit to cohabitees with children.

Baroness Stedman-Scott: We intend to take forward a Remedial Order to extend eligibility for Bereavement Support Payment to cohabitees with children. We are currently considering the detail and implementation of the policy and will update the House once we have a confirmed laying date.